


Mask, Unyielding.

by lavenderlotion



Category: Glee
Genre: AU, Alternate Universe, BAMF Kurt, Bitchy Quinn, Episode: s02e04 Duets, Established Relationship, Fuck Quinn, I hate Quinn, Kurt defends Puck, M/M, Relationship Reveal, Secret Relationship
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-10-11
Updated: 2017-10-11
Packaged: 2019-01-16 06:03:53
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,301
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12336936
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/lavenderlotion/pseuds/lavenderlotion
Summary: Kurt is trying his best to keep it together with his boyfriend going to Juvie. Bitchy Cheerleaders sure don't make it easy.





	Mask, Unyielding.

Kurt settles down behind Mercedes, choosing  _ not _ to sit next to his best friend solely so he can let his smile drop. Obviously Kurt is familiar with faking a happy face. It’s something he’s been doing for years and something he is intimately familiar with. Today it just feels like too much, though. He’d hardly slept, kept up all night by an increasingly worried Sarah, his own stomach a tight knot of anxiety. It was hard to comfort the little girl when he was feeling much the same things, but it wasn’t as though he had a choice.

If he did he’d have been with Naomi at the hospital. If he’d have had a choice, he would chosen to beat Noah upside the head then hold him close. He didn’t get to see Noah at all, instead having to listen to Naomi describe his injuries over the phone  _ without _ breaking down into a blubbering mess. But he didn’t and he couldn't, so instead he watched Sarah and pulled an all nighter before taking her caregiver's house. He had called the previous evening, explaining the situation. Luckily Nancy had understood why Sarah wouldn’t be in the right mindset to attend school and agreed to watch her for the day with her younger charges. He’d then rushed home and made himself up, throwing on a smile with practiced ease when all he wanted to do was follow Sarah’s example and curl up and cry. Or sleep, but probably cry first.

So he here was in Glee rehearsal, alone in the back row and doing a very successful job at tuning out Schuester’s  _ insistent _ babbling until he heard Puck’s name. He perked right up, forcing himself to ignore his pounding headache and instead focusing on what his teacher was saying.

“... in Juvie.” Ah, so the school must know. He’s glad Naomi had time to call, between checking on her son, handing off her daughter and zooming back to one of her three crap jobs.

Kurt had to stop himself from twitching when Tina spoke up, “It really was just a matter of time.” because that’s  _ not _ true. Since joining Glee, especially since he and Kurt began dating, Noah has been  _ good _ . He turned his pool cleaning business into something proper, stopped selling himself to the woman who owned the pools. He turned his grades around, allowed Kurt to tutor him, allowed himself to show interest and pride in his academics. He even acted out less, spending more time being there for his family than avoiding them. 

Of course, these were all things that no one else would really know. Noah was a relatively private person, despite the things he said about his sex life. He didn’t show himself off, rather hiding behind a carefully constructed mask - much the same way Kurt had. Getting to know each other had been difficult, often hitting raw nerves which brought up each boys defences. It had been worth it, sure, but it had been a long and tiring process that ended with a lot of surprises for both of them, the main being how much they really did have in common.

“What did he do?” Quinn asked, her voice incredulous though not shocked. Kurt just gritted his teeth tighter.

Mr. Schue then sighed, taking a moment as if to prepare himself before starting a story so out there Kurt thought the man must have been high, “He drove his mom's volvo into the front of a convenience store and drove off with the ATM.”

Laughter sounded out in the room and Kurt had to force himself to take another deep breath before saying something rash, and was surprised when Rachel said something that  _ didn’t _ make him want to beat her, “When’s he getting out?”

“Unknown,” Schue said, his eyebrows drawing together.

“He may be the dumbest person on the planet and that’s coming from me,” Brittany said, only a few seats to Kurt’s side. Usually Kurt loved Brittany, the two having a close friendship after their stint at ‘dating’. Though right now he wouldn’t mind smacking her upside the head, he had to agree. The bullshit story Schue had given them  _ was _ the stupidest thing Kurt had ever heard.

He almost wanted to hug the man when he asked for some sympathy towards Puck, which was such a strange feeling that Kurt tried to immediately push it to the very depths of his soul. It was almost refreshing when he then wanted to knock Finn out, “For a guy who put his needs before the teams? We his voice and his badboy stage presence.”

Luckily Schue was back to spouting bullshit about ‘opportunities’ and it was then Quinn’s voice that was grating on Kurt’s nerve, “For what? Further embarrassment and humiliation?”

“Yeah, you’d sure know about embarrassment and humiliation, huh.” Kurt muttered, staring straight ahead even as he hugged himself tighter. He was just too tired for this. 

“ _ Excuse me!? _ ” Quinn all but yelled, her voice nearly drowning out Santana’s, “Damn Lady Lips.”

“Oh I just figured you’d be an expert. With how you  _ so embarrassingly _ got  _ yourself _ drunk, and then how you  _ so embarrassingly  _ cheated on  _ your _ boyfriend with his best friend, and how  _ humiliating  _ it must have been to be knocked up by a  _ lima loser, _ and how  _ humiliating  _ it must have been to give that baby up for adopting even when the father  _ begged you to let him keep her _ .” Kurt spat, eyes never leaving the front whiteboard. He was just so  _ over it _ , over everyone thinking his boyfriend was some sort of horrible fuck up! Because sure, maybe Puck was. But Noah? Noah was a  _ good _ man, someone Kurt was proud to be with. 

“As if Puck could have raised Beth!” Quinn sneered, her face twisting into something ugly.

“Oh no, of course not. It’s not as though he’d  _ already been raising his sister! _ ” Kurt said, his voice raising as his face flushed with his anger. He turned his glare on the girl, watching in detached satisfaction as she literally recoiled in her seat.

“You really think a good parent would steal an ATM?” She asked, her voice unsure.

“That wasn’t even what happened!” Kurt yelled, hugging himself tighter as he tried to blink the stinging out his eyes. He wasn’t going to cry, not  _ here _ , in front of these people. He couldn’t. He had to stay strong, had to go and watch over Sarah again tonight. No way could he let that little girl see how upset he really was. 

“Oh and I guess you’d like to tell us what really happened then?” Santana sneered, her lips pulling back over her teeth. 

“He wrapped his bumper around a lamppost!” Kurt spat out, his eyes growing wetter just picturing his boyfriend in his hospital bed, face bloodied and ribs wrapped tight - leg elevated in a sling. He hadn’t even got a chance to see it, just heard what it had been like. Naomi had already been pacing the waiting room, phone out as she all but shouted at her employers. Sarah hadn’t taken any time to ran to him, wrapping himself around his waist as she sobbed into his stomach.

He hadn’t even thought about it, just offered to take Sarah home, to watch her until Naomi could get the time off - and if he was being honest, probably even then. He had taken Sarah home, using the key to the Puckerman’s house he’d been given ages ago. He’d fed her, sat with her. Let her grieve and cry before wrapping her up and holding her until she fell asleep, and still. He’d held her the four times she woke up crying, not stopping even as she was sleeping.

He - well he  _ couldn’t _ . If he couldn’t hold his boyfriend the least he could do was hold the boy's sister. And most days Sarah felt like his  _ own _ sister, anyway. So he himself hardly slept, staying awake long after Sarah fell back asleep each time, his whole body shaking even as nausea settled deeper into his stomach. He had been  _ so worried _ , he hadn’t even tried to eat that morning. And when Naomi called, letting Kurt know what would be happening from here on out it had only made him feel worse.

“Kurt, are you sure? Because that wouldn’t result in such a severe punishment.” His teacher asked, eyeing his student with concern. 

The laugh Kurt let out was an ugly, bitter thing, “No, but he was drunk! Then he punched the first responder so hard the man was knocked out,  _ then  _ he tried to fight off the cops. Which must have been an impressive feat,  _ since he broke his fucking leg _ !”

Kurt wiped harshly at his face, his next breath hardly more than a sob. He sat straight, fighting to control his features. He heard Santana snort and turned red eyes on her, daring her to say anything. Apparently his glare wasn’t as effective as it was against Quinn - or maybe his puffy eyes lessened the effect - but she still muttered, “Well Puck being drunk sure wasn’t a surprise.”

“His Nana died, you  _ bitch _ !” Kurt seethed, his mask finally breaking away as his face twisted into something ugly and broken. 

Santana, however, didn’t look upset. Instead she was smiling, an ugly, hateful thing twisting her face upwards, “ _ You’re _ the reason he won’t sleep with me!”

“That’s fucking right! And since it’s apparently  _ honesty hour _ , why don’t you just admit you only fuck Puck to convince yourself you’re not gay, even though  _ we all know that you’re in love with Brittany _ !”

That got a reaction out of her, the girl jumping to feet and shouting in Spanish, Mike quickly jumped up and held her around the waist, having to pull her back. Brittany and Quinn joined him, each grabbing an arm as the Latina continued to shout. Kurt shouted back, his voice laced with venom even as he transitioned to French, his first language. He launched himself at the girl, face red and furious only to be stopped by arms wrapping around his waist, lifting and twisting him away. 

He beat at the chest holding him, only recognizing Finn when the taller boy wrapped him in a hug, muttering into his hair. Kurt fractured, sobbing into his brother's chest as he clung back. He was terrified, had no idea what was going to happen. He knew the basics, that Noah was going to be in the hospital for another few days then transferred to a Juvenile Detention Centre where - because of his injuries - he’d get a private room. He’d also have a guard escort him to and from meal times, spending the rest of his stay alone. 

Kurt was actually worried about that. Noah was always hard on himself, hated on himself in ways he truly had not deserved. Naomi, as sweet as a woman she was, took her husband's abandonment hard. She’d spent little time sober for the first year after he left, often taking her aggressions out on her son. Even though she was now a decent mother - despite her work causing her to often be absent, forcing Noah to raise his sister while he was still young enough that he should have had someone raising him - that time had affected his boyfriend considerably. 

He still thought rather low of himself, and it didn’t help that he’d crafted a certain self image, controlling how others saw and thought of him. People were always believing the worst in him, aside from his own family. So Kurt knew the boy would berate himself, get down on himself. And Kurt hated that he wouldn't be there. Wouldn’t be there to whisper reassurances, hold the boy he loved while he faced what would have to be the hardest time of his life. 

Not only that, but his Nana had just passed away. Noah’s Nana was like his God. He had unyielding faith in the woman, loved her with all he had. She had taken them in after finding out what a mess her daughter had become and showed them love, the first bit Noah had experienced since his father left. He all but worshiped her, talking to her near daily and seeing her multiple times a week. He made sure to never be too busy to see her, never get too caught up to visit. And she loved him fiercely in return, their bond something that marveled Kurt. 

Hell, Kurt was missing the woman himself, missing the lady that so readily accepting him into her Grandson’s life and never said one bad thing towards him, instead inviting him into her heart and into her kitchen. Kurt knew her death would all but destroy the boy, if it hadn’t already. His reaction to the news was pretty telling, and Kurt was almost a little glad about his boyfriend going to Juvie. There were only so many ways he could hurt himself under watch, after all.

So Kurt let himself cry, if only for a moment before pushing away from Finn. He ignored everyone's staring, knew his sobbing had been loud and ugly and wiped harshly at his face, grabbing his bag. He walked slowly down the steps, still harshly gasping for air. He had to go get Sarah, spend another night watching over the girl as Naomi worked. He could bring her to his house, take the couch in his basement and give her his bed. She’d enjoy playing in Kurt’s closet, that he knew from previous experience. 

He took another deep breath and straightened his shoulders, mask sliding back into play. He lifted his chin and walked out of the choir room, his chest tight and painful. It didn’t matter, he told his nauseous stomach, he’d have time to worry later. Now he had to get Sarah.

**Author's Note:**

> this is an angsty fic. gosh. I normally don't write stuff like this, strictly because i love happy endings, and I love fluff and good feelings. I don't know where this even came from, but it literally hurt my heart to write it LOL!  
> puckurt has slowly but surely became one of my otp's. i love them to death. i think they are so good together, that they were honestly balance each other out. I also want to note that I tend to sort of ... ignore all of glee past season 2. some of season 3 i'll deal with, but it's mostly a fucking mess. also, I hate blaine, so there's that.  
> just, noah and kurt you GUYS UHHGH!!!! i love love love them, LOL!  
> anyway, i hope you enjoy this angsty little thing. i'm working on a longer (for me) sam/kurt piece right now, so we'll see how much longer that one takes, LOL!
> 
> [my tumblr!](https://lavender-lotion.tumblr.com/)


End file.
